How to not work while on holiday: Part 2 - The Review
One of the biggest struggles when you run your own business (especially if you LOVE what you do), is that you can't ever seem to STOP working!! Even when you're on holiday! You're probably wondering, is it even possible to NOT work on holiday when you have a business?
Yes, my friend - you can. And if you're interested in HOW I prepared my business to take TWO weeks off to travel Portugal without doing any work, you can read that here → How I prepare my business before taking a 2 week vacation (Part 1)
In this blog post, I'm going to be reviewing what I did and how well I would rate my 'preparation' in lead up to my holiday - AND what I would do differently to improve next time.
Basically, I wanted to share a breakdown analysis of my process with you, in case you happen to find it helpful when preparing YOUR business for an extended vacation :)
CONTENT:
Reviewing each of my 5 processes
My Review + did I end up working or not?
What I would do differently next time
Benefits of taking time off your business
My thoughts on not working while on holiday
1. Reviewing each of my 5 processes
Blocking off all meetings in my Acuity Scheduling Calendar
Highly necessary and SO glad I did this because I actually had 4-5 people book a discovery call. However, in the future, I'll be taking off the public link and personally inviting clients and potential clients to calls with me.
Inform any current or upcoming clients
While I did my best to inform my current clients about my dates off - I did get some last minute requests for website updates from PAST clients, which I wasn't expecting and I feel like I didn't give enough heads up to those clients.
Set up an "Out of Office Auto-Reply" in Gmail
This was really quick and easy to do - and I feel like it was super effective. I might tweak some of the wording in the future, but I was really happy with it.
Batch Create and Schedule Content in advance
Yeaaaa... the keyword here being "in-advance" and not 2-3 days before departure 😂 This had more to do with my time management and prioritising client work over my own business. BUT we did manage to get all the content created and scheduled, so the plan and content calendar was great! Just need to work on my timing part, so it doesn't feel so 'stressful' next time.
Touch in with my AMAZING VAs
What would I do without them, seriously. They did their jobs amazingly! And I felt like we did a pretty good job organizing different tasks. But I do feel like I could have made their jobs a little bit easier, if I'd set aside more time and space to organise and execute our plan!
2. My Review + did I end up working or not?
Not bad for my first ever holiday without planned working!! (since I started freelancing that is, which has been a few years now?). It actually felt STRANGE to not work, like I had very real withdrawal symptoms and habitually clicked my GMAIL app until I finally had to turn notifications off 😂
After a few days though, I relaxed and trusted that my preparation served me well. You're probably wondering though... DID I do ANY work on the whole trip??
Feeling a little guilty here, but yes I did. And it was quite a time-sensitive matter as it was a potential client, who wanted to start a project the week after I got back. So we hopped on a call and I prepared the contract and invoice for them.
Apart from that, I honestly did no other work, which I'm SUPER proud to say! And it was really nice to get to be super present, enjoying the moment, work-free :)
3. What I would do differently next time
While I wouldn't change any of the things I've done this time, however, I WOULD be inclined to add a few extra steps - in the case I decide to take a month off. My ideal goal is always to strive towards processes whereby my business can operate TOTALLY on autopilot with the help of my small team, while I am away.
That being said, here are 3 things I would do differently next time:
Send out a broadcast email to ALL of my current, past AND future clients
Maybe send this a month in advance, in order to give them enough time to plan ahead and reach out to me if they decide they need website updates done. And in the email be very clear about my dates and how much capacity I can feasibly take on before my departure.
While also letting them know how emails will be handled while I'm away, so they feel reassured that me and my team are still here to support them. Which brings me to my next point...
Getting my VA to take over my inbox while I'm away
Sometimes a client might have a question that my VA could actually answer or direct them to the right place. Or they might want to work with me, in which case my VA could also start the application process with them and see if they'd be a great fit or not.
So instead of just an auto-reply saying I'll get back to them in a few weeks, I would feel a lot better knowing that they are in good hands with someone on my team. Plus, it just feels a lot more courteous in my opinion.
Have an evergreen funnel set up
Currently, most of my income is from client work, which is tied to my time and energy - so it's called active income. While my Squarespace Design Templates AREN'T because they are a digital product that does not require my time or energy with each transaction - and thus called passive income.
So I'm in the process of creating an evergreen funnel, whereby I am still able to generate sales from my templates while I'm on holiday. And set up as much on autopilot as I can, with just a few small things my team will need to jump in and do manually.
Start my preparations 2-3 weeks in advance
Ok, so I'm a bit of a procrastinator and sometimes tend to leave important things to the last minute (or the last week in this case). Just as I was about to leave for Portugal, I had 2 different client projects to finish up + 1 new client to onboard + 3 clients who wanted to transition over to monthly retainers!
On top of this, I was supposed to batch create a whole bunch of content, organise with my team and prepare for my trip! Starting my business prep in the last week was too hectic and too overwhelming.
So next time, I'm going to either: try to start at least 2-3 weeks in advance // or finish all client work one week early and block off the entire last week JUST for business prep and content creating.
Which one would you pick? Tell me in the comments below! I'm curious!
4. Benefits of taking time off your business
For me, there are SO many benefits when you take time off your business, but I've grouped them into 3 categories:
Creative Space for New Ideas and Inspo
There is something magical about the world when you slow down enough to BE PRESENT.
You notice all the small minute details of the streets and buildings, the sounds, the smells, you see colours and patterns you'd previously never noticed. For me, this is FUEL for my creative inspiration - and I derive much from simply being in nature.
When you are in the present, you also create mental SPACE for yourself and as you accumulate more of that space, crazy new ideas will suddenly leap out at you left, right, centre!
The amount of GOLD downloads I have received by intentionally being present has been incredible.
Rest, Play and Recharge
This is like the MAGIC combo for creative work, honestly. I feel like my creative battery only gets recharged through adequate rest, lots of fun play, adventure, and a good dose of nature.
Whenever I feel like I'm not being as 'creative' as I could be, it's usually a sign for me to take a step back, rest a little more and do a fun trip somewhere to recharge my creative spark!
Deep Reflection and Introspection
When I suddenly have more time to spend with myself, in my head, I'll often wander deep into myself and kind of hold up a mirror to myself, while asking: do you like what you see? Do you like the life and business you've created so far? How are things, really? Like ALL the different aspects of your life - and I might journal on these thoughts too.
It helps me to sometimes face uncomfortable truths and deal with them rather than postpone them until they erupt.
5. My thoughts on not working while on holiday
Sometimes it can feel even MORE stressful when you're (working) on holiday because you can't be by your laptop hooked up to wifi 24/7 and that kinda gives you mild anxiety.
WHAT IF... a client needs something done asap? Or a new client sends through an inquiry? Or you get a REALLY important time-sensitive email? Or a whole bunch of other things could happen!?
Trust me, I've been through ALL of this. I used to even PRIDE in working while on holiday! Like, "ooh look at me, working diligently on my business to create freedom for myself" (while ironically NOT making the most of that freedom). 🤦🏻♀️
Once I dismantled the 'masculine driven' beliefs of our workaholic society, I realised that working while on holiday is NOT cool. Feeling stressed and un-present is NOT cool. Lying by the beach with an Iced Latte trying to find wifi (to do some work) instead of enjoying the sound of waves - is NOT cool. At least, not in MY opinion anymore.
Being FULLY PRESENT with yourself and others IS COOL. Giving yourself SPACE to enjoy and RECEIVE the rewards from all your work... THAT'S COOL.
So if you're thinking "that would be SO nice to go on holiday and not feel like I have to work." - well it's TOTALLY doable and a lot of it comes down to re-scripting your beliefs (which you have probably unconsciously adopted from society) and taking a hard look at your values and priorities in life - so that you have the power to CHOOSE what kind of holiday you want to have.
Tell me, if you've ever been in this kind of dilemma where you're on holiday but feel like you have to work, WHY do you feel like you have to work - and are those reasons actually true? Are there processes you could set up that could free you from those tasks? Or perhaps you've mastered the art of traveling without working? In which case, I'd love to know your favourite travel work hack below! ;)
And if you have any questions, feel free to message me here @arohavisuals 🙌